Hard fiber core pen and its cartridge



Aug. 27, 968 HIROYUKI MATSUMOTO 3,

HARD FIBER CORE PEN AND ITS CARTRIDGE Filed Sept. 1, 1965 FIG 1 FIG 3 FIG 4 FIG 2 I Ill III/I FIG 5 m ZZZ??? INVENTOR HIROYUKI MATSUMOTO United States Patent 3,399,021 HARD FIBER CORE PEN AND ITS CARTRIDGE Hiroyuki Matsumoto, Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Dai Nihon Bungu Co., Ltd., Tokyo, Japan Filed Sept. 1, 1965, Ser. No. 484,212 Claims priority, application Japan, Sept. 9, 1964, 39/51,820 7 Claims. (Cl. 401-199) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A capillary absorbent connector extends within an ink reservoir from the closed end of the reservoir to contact with a writing nib. The spacing between the lateral internal walls of the reservoir and the connector is made large to eliminate unwanted spontaneous ink feeding, while the connector maintains ink feeding in all attitudes of pen usage. This structure is provided in cartridge form for the replacement of exhausted ink supply.

A hard fiber core pen wherein a core, made by binding a longitudinally arranged fiber bundle with a thermosetting or thermoplastic resin or the like, is used in contact at one end with an ink absorbent so that ink may always flow through the core is already well known. However, it has a defect in that the content of ink is small and that, as its ink chamber is filled with the ink absorbent, with the consumption of the ink, air in the chamber will increase and will be inflated so much that an amount of ink larger than required will flow out through the tip of the core. Therefore, it has also been considered to put ink as it is into the ink chamber without using the ink absorbent so that the ink may flow directly to the core. However, this has a defect in that, when the pen is placed in an inverse position, the ink will separate from the core end and will no longer flow into the core and therefore it will be some time before the pen can be used to write.

An object of the present invention is to provide a cheap hard fiber core pen in which the above-mentioned defects of the conventional hard fiber core pens are eliminated, and which can be used to write even after it has been kept in an inverse position for considerable periods of time and in which the content of ink is large and in which no more ink than is required will flow out.

A further object of the invention is to provide a cartridge for hard fiber core pens which can be fitted to the rear end of a core after removing a cap so that the conventional defects may be eliminated.

The invention will be understood by reading the following explanation in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a sectioned elevation of an embodiment of the hard fiber core pen of the present invention;

FIGURE 2 is a sectioned elevation of an embodiment of the cartridge of the present invention; and

FIGURES 3 to are respective embodiments of an ink connector.

In FIGURE 1, 1 is a pen body, 2 is a hard fiber core made by arranging proper fibers longitudinally into a bundie and binding the bundle wth a thermosetting or thermoplastic resin or the like, 3 is a holder, and 4 is an ink chamber formed by an enclosing wall W and an end Wall E.

According to the present invention, a long thin ink connector 5 having a capillarity characteristic is inserted into the ink chamber 4 to provide a sufiicient clearance 6 from the inside surface of the chamber so that the rear end of the core 2 may lightly press the ink connector 5 at the forward end. As there is the clearance 6, sufiicient ink will be stored. Even if the pen is inverted and the ink 3,399,021 Patented Aug. 27, 1968 Fee separates from the rear end of the core, the ink will always fiow to the core due to the capillarity of the ink connector 5, will not break and will be ready for writing. As is evident from FIGURE 1, the light pressure and the universal feeding of the core via the connector is attained by abutting the connector on the end wall E. As the ink chamber is occupied substantially by ink rather than absorbent, the ink connector being located only in the central part of the chamber, the amount of air in the ink connector 5 is small, even when the ink has decreased. Thus, no more ink than is required will be forcibly pushed out to fiow. A receiver 8 is secured to the ink chamber 4 and is fitted around part 7 of the core holder C. The core holder is threaded as at 22 and 24 to receive caps 26 and 28 thereon. The caps are threaded into firm engagement with the flange 30 of the holder C.

FIGURE 2 illustrates a cartridge according to the present invention. 11 is a cartridge body, 12 is a fine long ink connector having a capillarity characteristic and provided with a sufiicient clearance 13 around it. A receiver 15 having a hole 16 to fit the rear end part 7 of the core holder is fitted in the opening 14 of the cartridge. 17 is a cap. When the cartridge is to be applied, the cap 17 is removed and the receiver 15 is pushed to fit the rear end part 7 of the core holder.

As the hard fiber core 2 somewhat projects at the rear end, it will lightly press and touch the forward end of the ink connector 12 and hold it in the position shown in FIGURE 1. Therefore, as mentioned above, no ink will break or drop. The ink connector is not limited to such long thin one of the uniform cross-section as is shown in FIGURES 1 and 2, but may be made thinner in the forward end part to be in contact with the core, middle part and rear part as shown in FIGURE 3 at 18, FIGURE 4 at 19, and FIGURE 5 at 20. Its cross-section is not limited to be circular but may be elliptic, square or of any other proper shape. The connector must not be made so thin that it lacks suflicient resiliency to press against the core.

It will be understood that this invention is susceptible to modification in order to adapt it to different usages and conditions and, accordingly, it is desired to comprehend such modifications within this invention as may fall Within the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. A pen comprising a core holder having a flange intermediate the ends thereof and a bore extending therethrough, one end of said holder being provided with a pilot and the other end with capillary spaces, a reservoir mounted on said pilot in fluid-tight relationship therewith, said reservoir comprising an enclosing wall and an end wall integral therewith, an end portion of the enclosing wall being reduced to form a socket with the end wall, an elongated connector having one end seated in the socket in contact with said end wall and having a socket in the other end, a hard fiber porous core extending through the bore in the holder and having one end seated in the socket of the connector the other end of said core being exposed for marking, and cover members seated on opposite sides of the flange and covering the reservoir and the capillary spaces, said connector comprising a material of high capillarity.

2. A pen as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connector comprises a body of uniform cross-section and of a crosssection equal to the area of the end wall.

3. A pen as claimed in claim 1, wherein the connector comprises a body of varying cross-section, one end of the connector having a cross-section equal to the area of the end Wall,

4. A pen as claimed in claim 3, wherein the cross-secti-on varies uniformly from one end to the other.

5. A pen as claimed in claim 1, further comprising a tubular sealing member mounted to said reservoir at the end of said enclosing wall opposite said end wall, the mounting of said reservoir on said pilot in fluid-tight relationship being by way of said sealing member.

6. A pen as claimed in claim 1, said connector being a long thin ink connector, said connector being spaced from the inside surface of the enclosing wall, the pen further comprising a receiver having a hole receiving the rear end of said core holder, said receiver being fitted in the opening of the reservoir.

7. A pen as claimed in claim 6, the spacing of said connector from the enclosing Wall being maximized: by minimization of the thickness of the connector subject to the condition that said connector have sufiicient resilience that it maintain a resilient, ink-feeding contact with said core.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 11/1960 Matschkal l5-563 10/1961 Rosenthal 15563 8/1962 Rosenthal 15563 2/1947 Rosenthal 15--563 5/1964 Steinberg et al. 15-563 FOREIGN PATENTS 2/1931 Germany. 11/ 1963 Great Britain.

ROBERT W. MICHELL, Primary Examiner. 

